OTTAWA — A federal public works employee is in the doghouse after they successfully filed claims to the civil service’s health insurance plan for their pet, Sun Media has learned.

The employee, who made two claims — one in 2008 and another this year — was only caught after another civil servant alerted authorities. After an internal investigation found they had made the false claims, they paid back the money, less than $100.

However, officials are being quiet as a mouse when it comes to any other details about the affair — refusing to even say what kind of pet was involved.

Sun Life, the insurance company that manages the Public Service Health Care Plan, said it takes fraud seriously but refused to comment on the case as did the federal Treasury Board, which oversees the plan.

Public Works and Government Services quietly posted a brief account of the incident on its website under the category of “disclosure of wrongdoings in the workplace.”

However, France Langlois, media relations manager for public works said the department is prohibited by law from giving any additional information about the case because it was the result of a whistleblower.

She said under the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act, the department must not only protect the identity of the people involved in the disclosure process but also any “information collected in relation to disclosures of a wrongdoing.”

The government has cited the same act in recent days to justify refusing to answer questions about a mysterious investigation currently taking place at public works.

While the attempt to claim health care expenses for a pet had opposition critics twittering with laughter, the government’s use of the disclosure act to refuse to disclose information had them howling in anger.

Liberal critic Martha Hall Findlay said the government is interpreting the act too widely.

“The irony here is that this is legislation that was established specifically so that examples of wrongdoing could be disclosed and it is being used to hide information.”

New Democratic Party critic Pat Martin said he has concerns about both the way the disclosure act is being used to refuse information as well as questions about how the Public Service Health Care Plan is being managed if people are trying to claim health benefits for pets.

“We need to know the extent of this kind of abuse.”

Martin said he will propose the government operations committee examine the management of the health care plan.

elizabeth.thompson@sunmedia.ca